Month: June 2013

Daily cat #2

Published on by AnitaLeave a comment

Different cats, different behavior.

So I just realized how different my cats are. Many people (obviously, not cat people) say they (the cats) have no personalities, and they are just some lazy, selfish, food wanting creatures, that have no love for their owners and do everything on the purpose of making themselves feel better.

Well, if that’s the case, I soooo want to be a cat.

Moreover, I want everyone to be cats. So they would just mind their own business and happiness.

The fact is, cats do have emotions, feelings and moods that are not simply concentrated around the food question. I am not talking about the obvious pet reactions for fear, excitement or so. I am talking about personalities.

Feket

To me, if they only reacted to certain impulses in an instinctive way they would all be more or less the same.

No. My three cats differ from each other in all ways possible.

Málna (Raspberry)

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She is about 2. She is the first addition to the family and she was found in a box, very ill. When I first took her to the vet, he said she won’t be around for long, as she had several illnesses and she was very tiny and weak. She is still around and 1,5 years later: fit as a fiddle. She stayed tiny though and looks very skinny. Now, she is the one with the most complex personality. She thinks of herself as a human being. No, seriously. When I make dinner, she assists. Not for the food. (Although she would really love to taste that meat. Really.) She even assists when I cut the onions (and some teardrops fill her eyes, too), peppers, and also when it is cooked she “helps” with the dishes.

When I set the table, she jumps on a dining chair and sits at the table waiting to be served.

Malna1

She sleeps in our bed and needs blanket. She comes to the bathroom to clean herself. She likes to travel in a car, and looks out the window or sleeps through it all on the back seat. She doesn’t mind traveling on a train, sleeping in a hotel room or walking on the beach. She likes to look at the water. She likes homemade, spicy “human food” a lot more than cat food. She likes to drink from the glass, not the bowl. She does not meow. Ever.

Xenomorph

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She is the “middle” cat. She had to find a new home, as her owner’s boyfriend was allergic to cat fur. She was a healthy, bubbly nice little cat. Since we thought Málna would appreciate some company we took her home and imagined they will play together for hours and run around happily.

Xeni turned out to be anti-social, unfriendly and incredibly lazy. She lives in her own little cat world. She plays alone (once a week), and hates if other cats want to play, too. She owns all possible plastic bags in our home. Two things she likes, her tummy and dressing up. Her favorite color is pink (she chooses pink every time. We tested it, as we could not believe they actually see colors).

She wears a lot of things: hair-bands, hats, plastic bags (any bags really), my bathrobe etc.

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She wears some overleft plastic thing as a skirt.. I came home to this the other day.

She likes to be complemented, if you say she looks good she turns into a model and everything is a runway for her. Oh, and if she wears something, she is very proud of it and holds on to it for at least a day. She hates travelling and throws up every time when has to travel in a car. She does not like to be away from home and hates to be outside. She also hates walking and adventures.

Blac(k)et:

He is the boy, and the youngest. When we realized Málna is still bored, as Xeni does not like company we figured we need a boy for Málna. Rumor has it, that black cats are very intelligent so we decided to get one of those from a cat shelter. It wasn’t long till we found him – he looked like a little bat and was the cutest little thing on Earth. He had a strong voice and talked all the time. He loves playing, adventures, doesn’t mind traveling but can be startled very easily. Everything takes him by surprise (he actually looks surprised all day long). Málna loves scaring him and running away.

feket

He loves everyone whether it is a human being or a cat. He gives out a 1000 kisses a day. He likes to play hide and seek, but gets angry and meows if he can’t find the others.He likes to hunt. He hunts down anything and everything. If he can not reach something he gets very frustrated and meows hysterically. He is “cat like”. He likes boxes and hiding under things. He wants the attention constantly and follows us around. He is just very different from the girls.

All in all, I really don’t think there are two identical cats. They are all different in shapes, colors and personalities. It is easy to say they lack affection for their owners, therefore are bad pets. There is no denying that they can not be told what to do, and when to be with you. That’s what makes them so special for us. They are creatures that can not be controlled and formed to please us.

You have to earn a cat’s affection, it is not given by nature. And that is something that needs to be learnt. This is the basis of human relationships. Or at least, should be. I some ways, they are so sooo ahead of us.

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Ratatouille – the not traditional way

Published on by Anita1 Comment

I have seen quite some recipes about this French dish, and it is made differently everywhere I looked.

According to the traditional recipes, it consists of aubergines, courgettes, peppers, tomatoes and onions basically cooked together. Not only it is totally vegetarian, gluten and lactose-free, but a very healthy option.

 

Now, I am still in the process of transforming to a healthy eater. I got to the stage where I try to balance my fat, sugar and gluten intake, but I still like to eat what I truly love. I am almost completely off fast food (oh, some chinese take-away still somehow magically makes its way to my home) and I swapped my crisps to millet balls. I do try my best. I don’t eat out anymore (unless it is an occasion and/or some pre-booked restaurant pampering with the Man), as I figured I can only trust the food I make. So tonight’s meal will be ratatouille. Not the way the French make it, BBC Kitchen makes it, or as it is seen in the matching named cartoon. I make it as my grandmother did. Maybe a little less healthy but the taste gives back for it all.

lecsó mouse

 

Grandmother's Ratatouille

  • Servings: 2-4
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients:

– 1 medium onion

– 4 tomatoes

– 5 green peppers

– 1 hot pepper

– 6 German/English sausages

– 1 traditional Hungarian sausage (optional, but this gives the great taste, and can be bought in several shops around Europe, even Tescos and Sainsbury’s have it.)

– paprika spice

– salt and pepper to taste

– olive oil

Peel the onion and cut it finely. If you have the Hungarian sausage, dice it up, too. Tomatoes and Peppers don’t have to be peeled, and can be cut to any shapes you like.

Get a medium sized pan and heat some olive oil. Add the chopped onions and cook them on medium heat until they look caramelized. Add a teaspoon of paprika spice (pay attention to it, as if it burns it tastes awful) and quickly add the diced Hungarian sausage. Give it a few minutes until it cooks a bit and add the tomatoes and a tiny splash of water. Cover it up and let it cook until it looks like a fine tomato sauce. At that point, add the peppers and let it cooked (covered) until the peppers are half raw. Add the sausages (can be cut in halves, diced however you like it to be) and cook until ready.

I usually eat it with some prokorn bread.

lecsó_friss_kenyérrel

 

Enjoy!

Daily cat # 1

Published on by Anita4 Comments

So Blac(k)at has a new habit. He eats flies. Gross. At first I got really nervous about the fact that he does. I mean, how disgusting is a fly? The other day, a really big green coloured one came to the kitchen and when I hit him/her with a newspaper little worms came out of the dead body instantly! So I figured I should look into this fly eating case. After doing a little research, I figured the best option is always…. just to think logical, and don’t panic.

feket 2

Is it dangerous for your cat to eat flies?

Well, think about a cat’s natural habitat. If he (say it is a him) lives out in the wild what would he eat? Mice? Squirrels? Less disgusting, but do they carry diseases as well? Of course they do. Even though it is icky and gross, your cat is designed by nature to be a predator. It is in his instincts. The only reason why eating mice can be dangerous is the fact that people poison them to keep them away from their home and storage. A weak, dying mouse is a very easy target for a cat, and he will probably catch and eat it. The poison is not designed to only kill mice and rats, it is deadly for our beloved pets, dogs or cats, too. This is something to worry about, and not the fly eating.

Is hunting flies good for your cat?

Definitely. What does your cat do when a fly is in? Concentrates. Good. It is good for kitties to use their brains and improve their senses. They also learn a few new good moves. They learn to jump, and to jump higher. They run around, and running surely burns some calories. Neutered, in-home cats can go lazy and put on some excessive weight which is a lot worse for their overall health, than the bacteria the fly carries.

Is this whole fly thing good for you?

We all know the funny sound they make when hunting for flying prey. Think about it. You are smiling already. Imagine them running and jumping around. They stumble and fall and get angry and meow, and meow harder, and the fly doesn’t care, and they use their paws…….. You are actually burning 1.3 calories per minute while laughing at this.

Oh, and after a good hunting session, they sleep for hours. They might let you sleep at night as well (naaw, don’t really get your hopes up).